Finding a Foundation: The Struggle

Heyyyy all you people!

                I know it’s been a while (againnnnn), but I’ve had some personal crap going on, blah, blah, blah. Anywho, I’ve recently been on the hunt for a new foundation because somehow my skin ALWAYS manages to look both shiny AND cakey. I know: wtf, right? I don’t have too much acne, just minimal breakouts and light scars from the past. However, I do have some red splotches and unevenness, so I do need decent coverage. The issue with this is that it seems like if I use anything with ANY coverage, even BB cream, I look cakey and somewhat mannequin-esque. No one wants that. I also tend to have trouble with coloring in foundations because I have intensely pink undertones in my skin. If I match it, I walk around looking like Miss Piggy, but if I counter it, it’s back to mannequin city. My skin is slightly oily as well. (I’m just saying all of this so that if one of my many issues is something that connects to you, we can endure this stuff together!) Sooo, within the past few weeks, I’ve purchased two raved about products, one of which sucked for me and the other that was amazing! Here were my results!

MAC Face and Body Foundation: I’ve heard nothing but great things about this foundation, so I purchased it without any hesitation at my local Macy’s. They matched me wonderfully (C2, I believe). I applied it and noticed that when I put it onto the back of my hand, it seemed extremely runny, but I also knew it was a lighter coverage foundation, so I didn’t think anything of it. I applied it with my Sephora airbrush finish liquid foundation brush. The brush did absorb a lot of the product, causing me to use a little more than I expected. Anyway, I blended the crap out of it onto my skin, as a girl should, and it looked great! I put on concealer and finished my eye makeup and when I went back to put on my powder, my skin was the oiliest I’ve ever seen it! I had to blot my skin and layer on the powder before leaving my house, which slightly defeats the purpose. They say if you have just a little bit of an oily issue, this product will still be good for you- that’s a lie! I am here to debunk that rumor for all you unknowing victims out there, much like myself. I know it’s supposed to have a “dewy” finish, but for me it really did look more like a “torrential downpour” finish. In the future, I might use super minimal moisturizer beforehand instead of my usual amount, try a different primer, or blot before applying the foundation to see what happens and what I can do to make it a little better. Anyway, that was my experience with Face and Body.

Urban Decay NAKED: I’ve been wearing this foundation everyday for about two weeks now and I absolutely LOVE it! First of all, it’s pretty reasonably priced at $32 for a rather large bottle. I only have to use one pump of product for my entire face AND it stays on amazingly with just primer—you don’t even have to powder it! (It’s actually recommended that you don’t!) I’ve been applying it with a medium-sized stipling brush and I can honestly say that it’s the best foundation I’ve ever used. I selected the color 4.5, which is just ever so slightly dark for me, so I highly recommend seeking help when choosing your color. The color shown on the bottles as well as on the matching chart are nowhere near the actual colors of the products, so you really do have to try them on when you’re serious about purchasing. This foundation makes all the difference because you don’t even feel like you have makeup on, yet it makes your skin look flawless in a natural (not too dewy) finish.

                I am really interested in your opinions! Tell me how your experiences with these foundations compare, or tell me your favorite foundation. I’m always looking for drug store products as well, seeing as that’s what I usually buy, so please share! Can’t wait to hear from you guys!

Is Less Really More?- The True Makeup Story

Hey everyone!

                I know it’s been a while- I've been on a crazy summer job search for the last few weeks (which I will talk about later), but I've also been spending tons of time with my best friends who are all home from college, too. Seeing as most of them are females and absolutely all of them are stunningly beautiful (I’m not even exaggerating- every. Single. One), I've been thinking a lot about the topic of makeup and I was really interested in what you guys had to say. Makeup: is less really more?

                For years, I've been going back and forth in my daily makeup routine between rocking the “naturally beautiful” look, and just going with what I've always done without concern about it being obvious that I’m wearing makeup. Believe me, there is a HUGE difference between the two. I usually wake up one day and realize that I am not one of those girls that can pull off the “hardly there” makeup look and go back to my old layering on eyeliner days.

                However, the conflict comes into play when I see my friends (as I said, completely beautiful) that either have no makeup on or extremely minimal makeup and, of course, look great and still get attention. To be perfectly honest, when I don’t have eyeliner on, I feel like I look like a turd, but on the other hand, it really doesn't look natural at all and makes it very obvious that you have makeup on. I feel like other girls who are big on makeup must feel this way about certain products as well.

                Now, the conflict intensifies even further when male opinions come into play. Men always seem to say that they prefer women who are naturally beautiful or who don’t need to wear a lot of makeup to look good. For those of us who aren't naturally all that gorgeous, this makes us automatically resort to the phrase “forever alone” and gives us the urge to purchase at least two cats in a single pet store visit. But, let us remember the most popular ideal women in men’s eyes: Kim Kardashian, Megan Fox, and even Marilyn Monroe. Yes, they are also pursued for their bodies, but are these women considered “natural?” Not at all. Well, not to us ladies, anyway, who know that they have professional makeup artists, stylists and hair stylists that use an endless supply of products on the every time they leave the house. And then there’s also the fact that if you’re in any kind of semi-serious relationship, the person you’re with is going to see you makeup-less at some point anyway! Do you really want them to be shocked? That sounds too awkward to even imagine. I would really love to hear any of your opinions on this issue, seeing as I keep flopping back and forth on mine! Thanks!

Peace and love, 

Emmy

Daily Makeup Routine!

Hi everyone!

                This is just my step by step, daily makeup routine that I do for basic, not-so-special occasions. I do wear makeup every time I go out, simply because I’m not naturally gorgeous, like some girls are lucky enough to be and it always seems like the times that you don’t wear makeup are the times when you see the most people you know, right ? However, I don’t wear too much makeup, I would say I wear less than others. (aka-just enough to fool people, haha). Just to let you guys know, I’m not listing brands of products, so if you want to know specifically about the name of the product, just ask! Anyway, here we go:

1.)    PREP:    I prep my face by washing with acne wash, putting on repairing lotion and then, very lightly moisturizing my skin. TIP: Make sure your face is completely clean so that you’re not layering on top of dirt and old makeup that will get locked into your pores. (Yucky).

2.)    PRIME: Since I have sensitive skin, it’s usually pretty irritated, so I use color correcting primer all over my face and slightly down onto my neck. You can use pore minimizing, regular, or whatever face primer will make your skin as perfect as possible! I then use eyeshadow primer on my eyelid to prevent creasing. TIP: Make sure to bring primer all the way up under the brow bone so that the highlight will last all day, too.

3.)    Skin: To make the look more natural, I mix BB cream and foundation on the back of my hand to use as my foundation. It makes for a less heavy look on the skin, while still giving a great amount of coverage. After mixing, I put the mixture in different places all over my face, then blend it in with a stippling brush. Make sure to work it into the skin, so it doesn't have an artificial look to it. TIP: Blend makeup slightly onto your neck and ears: nothing ruins a pretty, natural look like a big orange line where your makeup ends!

4.)    Concealing: Using a cream concealer (they seem to stay the best), I dab as much concealer as I need on any blemishes or red spots I have. I even cover up some old acne scars. TIP: Once they’re completely covered, only blend out the edges of the concealed areas. Why undo the covering you just did and have to add ten more layers? That just makes the skin look cakey.

5.)    Eyes: I use a liquid concealer that’s slightly lighter than my skin tone to cover under eye circles, so it both conceals and highlights at the same time. TIP: When applying under eye concealer, apply in vertical strips under the eyes, then blend. If you roll right over the under eye circles, the concealer settles into wrinkles that you didn't even think you had and won’t budge, no matter how much you blend….I speak from experience.

Take that same lighter concealer and apply it all over the eyelid and under the brow bone. Blend out both areas. TIP: Blend eyelid concealer a little past your crease to open and brighten your eye even more. (PS- I do this instead of eyeshadow because it looks more natural, but also brightens and emphasizes the eye area).

6.)    Eyeliner: For liner, I take a black kohl liner and just densely pack it into the lash line ONLY, so technically not fully lining the upper lid. It doesn't have to be perfect or straight. TIP: Keep liner as close to the lash line as humanly possible to make your lashes look fuller and to look more natural than a thick, black line across your lid. (No one was born like that!)

I take a dark brown matte eyeshadow on an angled eyeliner brush and use it to blend out the black liner that you just put on the lash line. TIP: For a natural look, keep it relatively close to the lash line for a softer eyeliner look, but if you want something smokey or sexy, blend it out as you want for more drama: you can even use the liner brush and brown eyeshadow to define the lower lash line! Last, I just line my bottom waterline with nude eyeliner to cancel out any redness in my eyes.

7.)    Lashes:  Curl your lashes to open up your eyes more, and apply your favorite mascara. TIP: For natural, pick a more natural-looking mascara or for a dramatic look, you can use false lashes or your most intense or noticeable mascara! Coat bottom lashes softly as well!

8.)    Finishing Up: Add a tiny bit of natural pink blush to the apples of your cheeks, just to warm up your face a little bit. I also just quickly run some clear brow gel through my eyebrows to keep them in place. TIP: For an instant eye lift, brush eyebrows up instead of to the sides. Finally, dust some translucent powder all over your face, or just in the oily spots to look less cakey. People with dry skin should use as little as possible, but still do this step to make your makeup last all day. TIP: Using a looser brush instead of a denser one makes the finish less powdery as well. Add a natural colored lip balm, gloss or lipstick and you’re all set!

I know this seems like a lot of steps, but it really only ends up taking me about ten minutes, once you get the hang of it. I hope you enjoyed this sort of tutorial/ makeup guide thing! Feel free to give me some feedback or future writing suggestions! I look forward to hearing your ideas!:)